Week 16 of the 2025/26 National Football League (NFL) regular season provided two of the best games of the year: the Seattle Seahawks had a 38-37 walk-off, overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams last week Thursday, and the Chicago Bears had a similar situation, a 22-16 walk-off, overtime win over the Green Bay Packers last Saturday.

A few of the Sunday games came comparatively close to the drama of previous days, particularly the Detroit Lions, who came this close to rallying from a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but two offensive pass interference calls wiped out two would-be go-ahead touchdowns, dropping them for a heartbreaking 24-29 loss. Last season, the Lions finished 15-2 atop the National Football Conference (NFC) and after the loss to the Steelers, they are 8-7 and clinging to a very faint chance at the play-offs.

To top that off, the Jacksonville Jaguars went into Denver and beat the Broncos, the then sole leaders of the American Football Conference (AFC), by two touchdowns (34-20), and the Carolina Panthers upset the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-20 to take sole possession of first place in the NFC South. And if that wasn’t enough to feed the Sunday palate of devouring NFL fans, the New England Patriots stormed into M&T Bank Stadium last Sunday night to defeat the Baltimore Ravens (28-24) and join the Broncos at the top of the AFC.

The defending champion Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFC East title last Saturday, with a 29-18 win over the Washington Commanders, thereby eliminating the Dallas Cowboys from play-off contention before they even played last Sunday. The Eagles are the only team to have clinched a division title heading into the penultimate week of the regular season, but nine more teams clinched play-off spots after the Week 16 slate (joining the Los Angeles Rams), leaving only four spots open, two in each conference.

Teams already confirmed for the postseason in the AFC are the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers, and Buffalo Bills, while the Pittsburgh Steeler, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, and Baltimore Raven are battling for the final two spots.

Teams already confirmed for the postseason in the NFC are the Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers, and Los Angeles Rams, while the Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers, and Detroit Lions are contending, for the final two spots.

That said, almost every game in Week 17 will have significant bearing on divisional titles and/or play-off positioning, even the games with teams who have been eliminated from play-off contention. Most notably, the Bills welcome the Eagles into the tundra of Highmark Stadium late Sunday afternoon, and the Bears go visiting the 49ers in a much warmer climate at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday night.

The Bills (11-4) are currently in second place in the AFC West, trailing the Patriots (12-3) by just one game, and have designs on not only the division title, but also the top spot in the conference. The Eagles (10-5) have already won the NFC East but are also poised to win their conference, if they win out and a few others fail in their last two games. After this encounter, the Bills and Eagles play the New York Jets and Washington Commanders, respectively, to close the regular season, which should not prove much of a contest, and therefore the winner of this contest will emerge with a better chance to achieve their play-off ambitions.

These teams last faced each other in November 2023, where the Eagles emerged victors in overtime, but JustBet favours the home team by a field goal in this matchup since Philadelphia has won two straight, while Buffalo is on a four-game winning streak, plus the Bills have the home-crowd advantage. This game could come down to who needs it more for their play-off ambitions and that just happens to be the Bills, as the Eagles are already locked into at least the No 3 seed in the NFC, and the Bills are aware that the Patriots play the Jets on Sunday and are expected to win.

That said, Buffalo’s run defence has been suspect, allowing 143.6 rushing yards per game over the last 10 games, while Philadelphia’s ground game has found footing (152.8 yards per game in the last four), and there should be a lot of running in the snow. However, the Bills are 16-1 at home since early 2024 and should keep their current win streak going.

The 49ers (11-4) are currently in second place in the NFC West, on the strength of a five-game win streak, including the overpowering of the Colts on Monday night. Additionally, the Seahawks outlasting the Rams last week Thursday gave them a shot at the top spot in the NFC, so they are primed for Sunday night’s encounter against the visiting Bears (11-4). The Bears lost this fixture last season, when they finished with a 5-12 record, but have made the play-offs for the first time since 2020 and look like a totally different unit, as they currently lead the NFC North.

These NFC heavyweights are expected to keep the scoreboard moving as they are two of the better offences in the league this year, but JustBet offers the home team as favourites entering the contest. The Bears pulled off a monumental comeback last Saturday to beat the Packers 22-16 in OT, after trailing 6-16 with two minutes left to play in regulation, and may benefit from two additional days’ rest against opponents who played on Monday night. Another concern for the 49ers is their high turnover rates as they go against the Bears, who have the highest takeaway number in the NFL this season (31), though Chicago also leads the league in turnovers (27). As for motivation, the Bears are just one win away from clinching their first divisional crown since 2018, though a Green Bay loss to Baltimore also achieves that goal, and a win this weekend (or a Philadelphia loss) also keeps them in contention for the NFC’s top seed. This is a must-win for both teams as they both have very formidable opponentsto play in Week 18. The Bears will hang tough, but the bookmaker should have the correct call.

There is still a lot to play for, and this weekend’s action promises to range from frantic to fantastic. There are teams still fighting for their play-off lives and even a slight misstep could be devastating to their ambitions. Are you ready for some football?

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Super Bowl LX Champion – February 8, 2026

Team – Odds

Los Angeles Rams 5.40

Seattle Seahawks 6.60

Buffalo Bills 9.60

Denver Broncos 9.80

Philadelphia Eagles 10.00

New England Patriots 10.00

Jacksonville Jaguars 13.00

San Francisco 49ers 15.00

Houston Texans 15.00

Green Bay Packers 17.00

*Only Top 10 odds are shown (see website for full list)

Note: Odds are subject to change

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